This invention relates to a method of cleaning a component, such as a turbine engine component.
A turbine engine has a number of components, such as a fan, a low pressure compressor, a high pressure compressor, a combustor, a low pressure turbine, a high pressure turbine and air oil seals. These components may require periodic cleaning as part of a repair and maintenance program. Some of these components, such as an air oil seal, are made of a composite material, such as fiberglass, carbon fiber, or aramid fabric. Due to the porous nature of this material, traditional surface cleaning techniques are ineffective at removing oil deposits set within the pores of the composite material. It may become necessary to remove this oil as part of a repair process. For example, oil may interfere with patching a leak in the air oil seal because of the incompatibility of the oil and the adhesive used for patching.
A need therefore exists for a cleaning method to remove oil residue from a turbine engine component.